Writing Convincing Copy the Easy Way

That's sound advice, and the approach of writing to a single person or friend is recommended by many of the best copywriters in the country too.

I agree that it makes writing easier, and it makes for better, smoother copy. It's easier to anticpate what and where objections might come up, and so on. Maybe by doing that, it's our natural conversational rhythms helping to guide the writing.

In reviewing my top 100 sales letters of all time swipe file, I see almost every one of them is written in the relaxed, conversational tone that you've described. Not a single one is written in the overhyped in-your-face approach used by many today (especially on web sites). As you found, many customers don't seem to like hyped copy.

There's just something about the relaxed conversational tone that encourages people to actually read the materials, and feel like they are the ones making the decision, on their terms. It's approachable copy, and not irritating. It could have the same compelling psychological triggers, just done differently.

Print is somewhat different than shorter-attention-span online formats, but the same principles seem to apply.

It would be interesting to see tests involving a typical CB-type overhyped ad versus a relaxed conversational ad for the same product, and see which converts best over time. Of course, it would depend on the product, placement, and target audience, but has anyone here done this kind of a test with such dissimilar approaches on the sales page?

(I saw an example of this a while ago with a financial promotion - the "Dear friend, there is trouble coming in the Dow" approach won handily over the "The Sky is Falling - Protect Yourself NOW!" approach, but I don't have the specifics.)

You are so right, Steve. My husband is a professional copywriter and he's always stunned at what he sees online because he could never pass that off at his day job -- nor would he want to!

I, too, would love to see a comparison of the hypey copy vs. a more conversational ad for the same product. People like to feel they have a friend, not like someone is just trying to butter them up.

It's funny because when I send emails to my list, there are always a few people who don't realize that my email was a blast to the whole list and they send me personal messages responding to any questions or comments I've made. If that's not a testament to the power of this approach, then I don't know what is!

Chrissy, a split test would be a great idea. I wonder if Adrienne has any data in this area??

Great thoughts. Split testing would be excellent.

I'll admit it. One place I suck at is A/B split testing. All I know is that once I got into the flow of writing this way, I got more conversions, but haven't actually done a side-by-side comparison to see which items made the biggest changes. Had my hands in too many pots when I decided to go this route. Now I only do things this way because it makes me feel more authentic in my marketing and in a Law of Attraction sort of way, I think this is most important for me.

Another thing I did notice is that many of my sites ranked better once I began writing this way which is telling me that bounce rate or time spent reading must be lower. I do have many of these sites in GA, so I should take a look to see how it has changed over time. Since they changed the format, I haven't taken the time to figure out where all the data is. Gotta love changes...

I agree split testing would be the best answer, also have you considered re-visiting your earlier pages that didn't convert as well before you had your breakthrough.

Re-writing them in your new style could provide a nice boost in sales and profits, providing they are still getting traffic or indeed still relevant.

I think that certain styles of writing that work well in some markets, don't work in others. It's all about knowing your market and what their pain points are.

Bear in mind that action is normally taken away from a pain rather than toward a pleasure, as the pain is a stronger motivation and catalyst for action.

Good luck,
Mark

Absolutely! People want to avoid pain and it is also true that not every market responds the same to the same approach. I was suggesting that we start with our authentic voice and weave in the other elements, not start with the benefits, avoidance of pain etc and then try to find one's voice in that.

Adrienne, whilst I agree in principle with your approach aren't we really trying to tap into the "inner voice" of our target market....and if this responds to eye popping, benefit laden sales copy then "we" would be somewhat silly as IM business owners to stray to far from an approach that works. I am not saying this IS the way but especially in the IM space this does appear to be very effective.

I think I see what you are saying, but I'm not saying that is inherently wrong. When you think of it, people buy from people. And if we talk to them as if they are people, I think we have a better chance of engaging them and making them feel we are on their side. We must mention all those things you say, but if we appear to be barking orders at them, don't you think the reaction would be less than positive? For those of us to whom this style of marketing is foreign, it ends up coming across that way when we don't find a genuine, "caring" way to enter the conversation. Yes, we are getting to their inner voice, but I think it can be done in a variety of ways, this is just one that resonates with me and perhaps with others.

Every copywriter finds their own copywriting style. You then tweak your style depending on your market. Good copywriting is conversational.

For example, I really enjoy Gary Halbert's writing style. My favorite swipe file of sales letters is Gary's Motherlode collection.